Man attacks woman in Santa Monica elevator

Police have released a composite sketch of a man who allegedly attacked a woman in an elevator as she arrived for work in Santa Monica.

The attack happened around 9 a.m. last Wednesday on the 400 block of Santa Monica Boulevard. According to police, the victim parked her car in an underground parking garage and got into an elevator. The suspect followed the woman inside, and as soon as the doors closed, he attacked her.

"This is pretty unusual, that an unknown person would attack another person in broad daylight in the morning," said Santa Monica Police Lt. Robert Almada.

The woman told police she fought back. When the elevator stopped a few floors up, the suspect fled. A witness waiting for the elevator tried to follow the suspect, but he got away.

The suspect was described as a man in his late 20s, 5 feet 7 inches to 5 feet 10 inches tall, about 150 pounds, with short, straight black hair, brown eyes, a light goatee and tattoos on his arms. On the day of the attack, he was wearing a dark tank top and orange and red board shorts.

Anyone with information was asked to contact Santa Monica police at (310) 458-8495. Callers can be eligible for a reward, up to $1,000, if their information leads to an arrest and conviction.